Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) by 28.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,265 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,725 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Laboratory Co. of America were worth $2,496,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Laboratory Co. of America by 313.2% in the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 219 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.94% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Price Performance

NYSE LH opened at $227.01 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $221.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $211.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a 12-month low of $191.97 and a 12-month high of $238.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.06.

Laboratory Co. of America (NYSE:LH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.78 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.42 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laboratory Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Laboratory Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LH shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $261.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $213.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Laboratory Co. of America from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Laboratory Co. of America from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Laboratory Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total transaction of $3,359,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.99, for a total value of $3,359,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,008,423.11. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Lance Berberian sold 12,093 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total transaction of $2,770,506.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,921 shares in the company, valued at $3,647,501.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 29,679 shares of company stock worth $6,716,306. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Laboratory Co. of America Profile

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings operates as a life sciences company that provides vital information to help doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, and patients make clear and confident decisions. It operates in two segments, Labcorp Diagnostics (Dx) and Biopharma Laboratory Services (BLS).